Simple
by NotAnIslander
Summary: Just another old-fashioned Post-Mockingjay Pre-Epilogue in universe Everlark growing back together story.


Thanks to Louezem, Mega-Aulover, and CT522 for giving me their eyes and ears. I own nothing as it all belongs to Suzanne Collins, I just borrow for the time being.

 **SIMPLE**

You're back" she croaks at him, her voice rusty from disuse.

"Yeah, Dr. Aurelius wouldn't let me leave until yesterday. By the way, he says you need to answer your phone…" he says almost apologetically. He knows how much she must be hurting, how hard it must be for her to face her ghosts alone. But he also knows the best way for her to face them is with someone else, and with Dr. Aurelius's advice. So, while he's sorry he has to tell her to answer the phone, he knows it's what is best for her.

KPKPKPKP

"Thank you for the bread," she tells him softly. In the past week she's used her voice more and more. Still not saying much, but saying enough. She's losing that wild animal stare she once had. At times she looks at him so hard, he almost feels as if she's pushed against him. Other times he catches her looking at him out of the corner of her eyes, as if she's trying to see if he'll stay, even if she's been rude to him. Sometimes he stays, and sometimes he leaves. It all depends on his own ghosts and nightmares.

KPKPKPKP

"I had this idea. It's a book, like my family plant book. You remember working on that with me don't you?" she asks him pleadingly. He does remember working on it. It's actually one of the best memories from his old life that he has. It was just the two of them, in her room, locked away in their own little world, away from the prying eyes of the rest of the neighborhood, district, country. He remembers how close they were, how they could anticipate each other's ideas and thoughts.

"Sure! I think it's great. We can work together on the drawings, you always have such a great memory for those little details. I'm afraid some of mine might be a little warped still." He looks down, afraid to see pity in her eyes. He knows he isn't the same person he was before his hijacking. He feels worse about that than he ever did about losing his leg. _Isn't it funny?_ He wonders. So many would have been devastated that they weren't "whole". But losing his leg didn't make him feel as incomplete as losing his mind did.

KPKPKPKP

"Let's go for a walk," she says enthusiastically one day. He's more than happy to humour her. It's been almost a week since he's seen her. The dark days still come over her, and she gets so lost in her own thoughts that it's hard for her to resurface. But when she does, she seems to have shed yet another layer of grief. He doesn't know how many layers she still has on her, but in a way, he feels that this is her way of working through so many years of hardship. One day at a time, one week at a time.

"Where will we go?" he asks her, if only to know how long they'll be gone so he can decide if his leg will make it. It still occasionally hurts after too much use. He supposes he should tell someone about it, but he puts it off.

"Are you worried about your leg? We can just go to the overlook?" She knows his leg bothers him, even if he won't say it. It's amazing how much she's learned about him since they've both come back to 12.

"Not today. It's feeling pretty good. Let's go for a longer walk," he tells her casually, but deep down he's amazed that she asked about his leg. Maybe she's paying more attention than he's ever given her credit for.

"Great! I want to go to the lake. It will take a bit longer to get there, but once we do we can stay all day, swim, fish, eat, rest. Then, when it's time to come back we can take it slow."

"Sounds good. Let me get some bread and water." And soon they head off into the woods.

He reaches out and holds her hand like it's the simplest thing to do. And she thinks it is.

KPKPKPKP

It's a long, lazy summer for the two of them. They don't get out of the Village much, except to go to the woods, or to the train station on the outskirts of town to pick up supplies. Both of them are too afraid of the ghosts in town, and Dr. Aurelius encourages them to take their time. "There is no rush. You two have been through enough. Take your time, find out what you want to do, what you like to do, and do it. Remind yourselves of who you used to be before all of this happened."

They spend the summer enjoying each others company, building up a friendship that had seemed to be just beginning before the Quarter Quell. He bakes, she hunts, and they both check up on Haymitch when he's been drinking too much. They discover he has decided to raise geese, which isn't a bad pursuit, except that when he's drunk they have to fend for themselves, which means breaking out of the pen and rutting around in the other yards. So they spend time rounding up geese as well.

KPKPKPKP

Summer lingers into fall, the woods begin to change, and so do they. "I'm going into town today," he announces at breakfast.

"Are you sure?" she asks with trepidation.

"No. But I'm going to anyway," he answers resolutely. "It's time. I need to face it. Dr. Aurelius and I have gone over it, and there is something I need to check on."

"OK. Do you want me to come with you?" She's trying to be a brave and supportive friend, but inside she's scared. She knows she is not ready to see it. Knows that when she does go back to town, it needs to be cleaned up. She can't bear the thought of seeing the burned out buildings and bodies again, they still haunt her every night as it is.

"No, actually. I need to do this on my own. But I may come visit when I'm done. If that's alright?"

"Yes! Of course!" she answers. Even if she doesn't want to see town, she's still curious about it.

KPKPKPKP

He begins to spend most of every day in town, while she remains on the outskirts, occasionally going to the train station, but more often than not, allowing him to pick up supplies for her. At first she doesn't mind his absence. They didn't spend most days together anyway. But as time goes on, an uncomfortable feeling begins to settle into her chest. While he still stops by each day, there are evenings he's so tired he can barely keep his eyes open, some nights when he phones to tell her he can't make it to dinner. She tries to shake off this feeling, it isn't as if he owes her anything. They are friends, and she's sure she's fine with that. At least she thinks she's sure.

KPKPKPKP

One night, as she is in her kitchen preparing dinner for herself, she hears a howl outside. At first she's afraid it's Buttercup, but soon she realizes it's the wind. A blizzard has hit, seemingly from nowhere. It doesn't take long for her anxiety to kick in. She begins to shake, and sinks down to the floor, "My name is Katniss Everdeen. I live in District 12. My mother lives in 4. Haymitch is here, and so is Peeta…Peeta! Did he make it home?" Soon, her phone rings. She forces herself up off the floor to answer it.

"Hello?"

"Katniss! Good you're home! I was so worried that you'd still be in the woods!" he says, the relief palpable in his voice.

"No, I stayed home today. Where are you?"

"Still in town. I guess I'll be staying here for the night."

Although she knows this is the best thing for him, she still can't help but feel the loss. They've just started sharing the bed, helping each other keep the nightmares away. It started simply- he was over after supper, they were working on the Memory book, and it was later than either thought. She simply looked at him, offered her hand, and they went up to sleep. No words were exchanged, but they both had the best night sleep they'd had since returning to 12. They haven't discussed it, but she knows that this arrangement serves both of them. She wonders how she will sleep tonight. Strange how in one short week, they've slipped into this old routine.

"OK, yeah, sure," she says, not sure at all.

"Hey. I know that I won't be there tonight, but we can stay on the phone if you want. We don't even have to talk if you want, we just don't have to hang up."

"Yeah. Yeah, I'd like that," she says, feeling a bit emboldened now.

That's how they spend the evening. When it's close to bedtime he says softly, "Hey, don't hang up. Just put the phone on your pillow, and I'll put mine down too. If one of us has a nightmare, then we're just on the other end of the line, ok?"

"I'd like that," she says sleepily. "Night Peeta."

"Night Katniss."

And though his arms aren't there to keep her safe, she can hear his steady breathing on the other end, and that has to be enough.

KPKPKPKP

The next morning she wakes to the sun shining brightly through her window, the storm blew itself out overnight. She sits up, feeling rested, but still unsettled. _What is Peeta doing in town? Is he seeing someone? If he was, why would he spend all night on the phone with her?_ She's conflicted and not quite sure. She picks up the phone and hangs it up. After getting ready for the day, she heads down to the kitchen to make breakfast. As the eggs are frying in the pan she hears a loud banging coming from her front entrance.

"Katniss!" he yells, "Is that bacon?"

"Welcome to breakfast Peeta," she yells back, with a smile on her face. "Come on in, I've got food ready now."

As he makes his way in, she turns around and sees he has a package. "Who's that for?"

"You. Here, I'll get the plates and food, you open it," he tells her, as excited as he'd be if the surprise was for him.

"Snowshoes?" she asks when she opens the box. "Who sent me snowshoes?" She asks.

"I did. If that's OK, that is," and it's only now that he worries she might be upset.

"Yeah! It is! I was thinking about getting some so I could get into the woods when there's snow. How did you know?"

"I didn't. I just thought I'd like some if I'm going to be going back and forth to town, and I thought you might like some too," he tells her, relieved. He had been so excited about getting them, that he forgot to consider what she might think.

"I do! Thanks Peeta," she smiles at him. "Speaking of town, what's it like?"

"Actually, it's really nice. I'd, um, like you to come into town with me later," he says hesitantly.

"Why?" She's a bit suspicious of his motives.

"There's just something I'd like to show you, that's all."

"I'm not sure…"

"Please? It's really important to me…"

"Ok, fine," she sighs. But inside she feels anything but. She wonders what it could be. What if it's another girl? What would she do?

"Really? Great!" he exclaims, wrapping her up in his arms. "Let me eat some breakfast," he kisses her forehead, "go back to my place to shower and change," he kisses her cheek, "and then we'll go," he kisses her lips.

She stands there, stunned. One, because of the ease in which he kisses her. Two because he just kissed her. And three, because she likes it, and actually doesn't mind that he kissed her. She thinks of the time Gale kissed her without asking. Then she felt off kilter, like she wasn't sure what was happening. This time, all she feels is warm, and right, and she has a hard time wiping the smile off of her face. Because she's pretty sure now there isn't another girl in town.

He can't believe he just did that, as simple as it was. He didn't plan to kiss her, but he did it. He's not sure how to react now, since she's still staring into the space he just vacated, so he sits down to eat, trying to stifle the smile on his face.

KPKPKPKP

Later that morning, they put on the snowshoes and head out to town. He can feel her anxiety over this simple task, and part of him wants to tell her it's ok, that she can stay home. But the stronger part of him knows she needs to do this, and his surprise snow shoes are just the excuse to get her to town.

It's different than it was this summer. The ghosts are cleaned up, and with the expansion of the medicine factory, there are more people in town. The rebuilt town square looks similar to what it was before, since most of the buildings were constructed over the old foundations. But it's cleaner, fresher, newer. He likes it, he thinks it's a good change, and he's proud to be a part of it. Soon, they are on the far side of the square, looking towards the building he's so proud to show off.

"Peeta. It's so different. I don't know. I don't know these people, I think I need to go…" she says as she starts to pull away from him. But he holds on tight, he's not letting her back out now.

"Katniss, look! It's the square, but it's different. Really look. What do you think?" he says softly, putting his arm around her for protection.

"It's cleaner, that's for sure," she swallows, her eyes darting around. "I don't miss the stockades that were there last winter. Or the coal dust covering everything." she says softly.

"Here, let's just walk over this way," he encourages. She moves slowly, but she stops trying to leave. She follows him, puts her trust in him, as he leads her to a particular building. She knows he wouldn't hurt her. It's that simple.

"Peeta. What's this?"

"It's my surprise!" he answers proudly.

"Is it… a bakery?"

"Yep! It is! And it's all mine! Come on in, let me show you around!"

Two levels, the shop up front, the kitchen in the back, and an apartment up top. "Here's where I stayed last night," he points to the sleeping bag and pillow on the floor by the phone stand. "It wasn't the most comfortable, but it was better than trying to head back in that storm."

"Wow. I can't believe you've done all this," she looks around, notices the space, the way the kitchen looks so much like it did when they were younger, but still different. Newer and shinier.

"I did have help. Are you surprised? Are you happy?"

"I don't know. I mean, I'm glad you've got something to focus on. It's all the same yet so different, so new." she says in awe. "But I like it," she smiles at him, "I like it a lot."

KPKPKPKP

Time goes on, seasons change. His business in town is a success, just as everyone knew it would be. She spends her days in the woods, taking time to trade with others in town. He bakes, she hunts, and every evening they spend together. Once they finish the memory book, with Haymitch's help, they spend their time playing games. He teaches her chess, though she's never been great with strategy. She has always been a woman of action. Secretly, he enjoys beating her, but he's a generous winner too. Dr. Aurelius's phone calls became fewer and fewer, until it's on a maintenance basis. She still has her dark days, just as Peeta still has his flashbacks, but they are there for each other.

KPKPKPKP

Their relationship grows, much like a flower. It's hard to notice on a day to day basis, but after a time they realize that there is only one person they want to tell their most important news too. When she finds a new meadow over the rise of a hill she's never explored, she knows Peeta is the only person she wants to share it with. When he receives a letter from Plutarch wanting him to host a cooking show for his new network, he can't wait to tell her so they can both laugh and be outraged at the same time. It is the little things, the simple things they notice.

KPKPKPKP

They lay in bed each night, chatting about their days, holding hands, exploring each other. Later on in life, he would say this was when he knew he had fallen in love with her all over again, these simple acts of talking, touching, finding out what makes the other tick.

KPKPKPKP

It happens one night, but it's been building up over the past year. One minute they are kissing, holding, caressing, then next minute, he slides into her. As simple as that, but so complex at the same time. He's known he's loved her forever, he's pretty sure she loves him, but he's still nervous to ask, "You love me? Real or not real?"

And, quite simply, she says, "Real."


End file.
